10 Beaches That Should Be on Your Bucket List

Anse Source D'Argent, La Digue, Seychelles

This beach, interrupted by groups of huge granite boulders, looks exotic and miles away from ordinary even before you find out where it's located: northeast of Madagascar, off the coast of Africa. Here, on the Seychelles' third-largest inhabited island, the natural environment is unspoiled and the pace is unhurried. Bicycles and oxcarts are still the main ways to get around. When you arrive at Anse Source d'Argent, already on island time, you'll find yourself poking around all the interesting craggy nooks of the rock formations that divide the beach into little secluded areas.

Best Time to Go: The tropical climate is warm year-round. In April and October, the winds settle, creating ideal conditions for swimming, snorkeling, and diving. During these months, the water temperature can reach 84 degrees and visibility can exceed 100 feet.

Hidden Gems: Introduce yourself to the island's French and Creole influences in the restaurant near the beach.

Playa Grande, Las Baulas National Marine Park, Costa Rica

One of the world's largest nesting grounds for leatherback sea turtles, this quiet beach in the Guanacaste region is a protected nursery for new hatchlings. And its eco initiatives have earned it a Blue Flag designation. During nesting season, you can see turtles smaller than the palm of your hand before they make their way across the sand for their first swims in the Pacific Ocean. Playa Grande is also one of the country's most consistent surf spots, with a solid beach break and tube rides. Local surf schools teach lessons here.

Best Time to Go: Ideal surf conditions are December through March. The most active nesting turtle season typically occurs between November and March, when park guides offer nighttime nesting tours.

Hidden Gems: The estuary dividing Playa Grande and the nearby city of Tamarindo is a great place for bird-watching and kayaking through mangroves.

Pink Sands Beach, Harbour Island, Bahamas

You won't need your rose-colored glasses at the idyllic Pink Sands Beach, a powder-soft strip used as the backdrop for one of Sports Illustrated magazine's annual swimsuit issues. Models aside, the beach is famous for its hue, which comes from crushed coral. The vast expanse of blush pink—100 feet wide in places, and blanketing the entire three-mile eastern side of the island—creates a dramatic effect. It's absolute serenity: clear blue-green waters gently lapping the shores of a beach that's just about empty. Since Pink Sands is on a tiny Out Island, it doesn't see much traffic beyond the occasional day-trippers ferrying over from Eleuthera.

Best Time to Go: The pink appears more vibrant in the morning and evening. The driest season and most popular time to visit is December through April.

Hidden Gems: Snorkel the calm, shallow waters protected by an outlying reef. Restaurants and bars are within walking distance.

Maya Bay, Koh Phi Phi Le, Thailand

If you've seen The Beach (starring Leonardo DiCaprio), you've seen Maya Bay in Thailand's gorgeous Phi Phi archipelago in the Andaman Sea. An hour-long boat ride from Phuket, this tropical paradise of emerald waters, white-sand beaches, and limestone cliffs draped in forests seemed desolate and secluded in the movie. But the beach has become so popular that you'll need to hire a boat and arrive before 9 a.m. if you want photo ops without other tourists in the background. Don't miss snorkeling or scuba diving in scenic coves around the southern part of the islands, which are deep and full of coral formations.

Best Time to Go: Between November and April, the sea is calm, the weather is more temperate, and the rains are less frequent.

Hidden Gems: Hike the trails deeper into the palm trees surrounding the beach for stunning viewpoints above the water.

Punalu'u Black Sand Beach, Big Island, Hawaii

This famous beach on the Big Island's southeastern Ka'u coast is one of the rare places in the world where you can squish black sand between your toes. The jet-black shoreline is unforgettable. Every inky basalt grain at Punalu'u is the result of lava from nearby Hawaii Volcanoes National Park exploding as it hits the ocean and cools. Admittedly, this rocky beach isn't the best place for swimming. But the tradeoffs are the unique sights of coconut palms rising up from black sand and Hawaiian green sea turtles napping on the beach.

Best Time to Go: Temperatures average about 85 degrees in summer and 78 degrees in winter. The island's peak whale-watching season runs from January to early April.

Hidden Gems: Look closely and you'll see cold fresh water from underground springs mixing in with and blurring the saltwater. Locals and fishermen love the adjacent campground.

Trunk Bay, St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands

Part of a national park that covers half of St. John, Trunk Bay is hemmed in by dense forests fringed with coconut palms and sea grapes. It's a spectacular undeveloped landscape. True to form, the beach has the signature Caribbean turquoise water and white sand, but you'll see the best color on the beach's snorkeling trail. Snorkel, SNUBA, or scuba dive the 225-yard trail to spot 30 species of tropical fish and the occasional sea turtle. Underwater signs help you identify what just swam past you. This beach is loaded with facilities: a bathhouse, a snack bar, a souvenir shop, and a snorkel-gear rental shop.

Best Time to Go: Visit in the early morning or later in the day to avoid hordes of cruise-ship passengers. The best bargains on hotels and attractions are in summer.

Hidden Gems: Each year, about 100 couples renew their wedding vows here on Valentine's Day. The free ceremony has grown into an island tradition over the past 14 years.

Pampelonne Beach, St. Tropez, France

A legendary spot for people-watching, Pampelonne Beach, just outside of St. Tropez, attracts the glitterati to its chic beach clubs, where lounge chairs and umbrellas rent at a premium. The long, narrow white-sand beach is lined with high-end shops and upscale restaurants, with outdoor tables at which you can perch above the sand and take in the always-fashionable French Riviera. After dark, the nightlife takes over at Club 55, Nikki Beach, and Tahiti Beach clubs.

Best Time to Go: Beach clubs are open from May through October, but the best time for people-watching is during the nearby Cannes Film Festival and the Voiles de Saint-Tropez sailing regatta event in October.

Hidden Gems: To see little creeks, gorgeous villas, and breathtaking views over the peninsula without the crowds, walk along the Sentier du Littoral footpath between the St. Tropez cemetery and Ramatuelle at Pampelonne Beach.

Whitehaven Beach, Whitsunday Island, Australia

The most photographed beach in Australia is this swirling mix of aquamarine water and gleaming white sand. Whitehaven Beach, on the largest of the 74 remote Whitsunday Islands along the Great Barrier Reef, is a repeat winner of clean-beach awards. It's dog-free and smoke-free, and its sand is nearly free of anything but silica (98 percent), making it a squeaky clean shade of white and always cool on bare feet.

You can get to the island by boat or seaplane. It's not uncommon for the local seaplane companies to assist with marriage proposals, arranging to have "Will you marry me?" written in the sand for the couple to see as they fly over Hill Inlet to the beach.

Best Time to Go: The driest days and most comfortable temperatures are from May through October, which is also the peak time to see turtles and whales.

Hidden Gems: Hike to Hill Inlet for a stunning view of the crystal-clear waters and pristine sand.

Siesta Key Beach, Sarasota, Florida

This stretch of snow-white Florida sand was recently named the number-one beach in America on the annual Top 10 Beaches list by Dr. Beach, coastal expert Dr. Stephen Leatherman. What sets Siesta Key Beach apart is the texture of its sand. Composed almost entirely of crushed quartz crystal, it's so fine that it feels like satiny baby powder or powdered sugar. And a huge swath of it spreads hundreds of yards wide, offering lots of room for Frisbee and sand volleyball courts. Siesta Key Beach is clean and groomed every morning, making it an ideal place to go beachcombing for the many shells and sand dollars that roll in with the tide.

Best Time to Go: Anytime. The sand never gets hot and the waves are normally measured in inches (not feet) year-round.

Hidden Gems: Check out the Sunday evening drum circle and the sand-sculpting contests held several times a year.

Matira Beach, Bora Bora, French Polynesia

The quintessential South Pacific beach, Matira delivers on all counts: a crystal-clear lagoon in blues and greens, powdery white sand, swaying palms, warm breezes, and that middle-of-nowhere feeling. On Bora Bora, an hour-long flight from the main island of Tahiti (where international flights arrive), a necklace of coral encircles the island's 18-mile perimeter, sheltering secret lagoons. Lush mountains create a dramatic backdrop for the postcard-perfect Matira Beach, one of the lagoons where jet-setting celebs relax anonymously. Want an adventurous day in paradise? Matira Beach is known for excellent kiteboarding conditions. Rent a board or take a lesson before catching an incredible sunset.

Best Time to Go: Anytime. Both the air and water temperatures average 79 degrees year-round.

Hidden Gems: From Matira Beach, jet ski around the entire island of Bora Bora to see other legendary lagoons and beaches.

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